you’re going to be disappointed. That’s his job, after all.” Pem told Caroline to shut up. “I will not. I should have known something like this would happen. This is the worst town I’ve ever been in.”
“There’s more.” They all looked at the captain. “As he was shielding them from the man, Stanley—he’s the oldest, I’m to understand—drew a weapon from the back of his shirt and fired two shots at Officer Gray, killing him. Three other officers were shot too. When it was realized that Stanley was the one firing at them, two more officers tried to talk him into putting the gun down. When Stanley fired, killing another officer, they had no choice but to fire back.”
“Oh my god. No. You shot my son? He is only a little boy. Is he on his way to the hospital? He’d better be getting the best of care. And I’m not paying for it either. To think that you had me—”
“Shut the hell up and listen to him.” Theo looked at Amos. “Go ahead. Tell them the rest. You’re doing fine.”
Nodding, Amos looked at the couple in front of him. “When Stanley went down, we thought it was over. We were heartbroken for sure, but then David picked up the gun and began firing the rest of the clip at anyone he saw. He was as calm as his brother had been. Firing the gun as if he’d had plenty of practice at firing a weapon.” Caroline stood up, and Amos told her to sit down. She did so. “Do you by chance own a gun? Either of you?”
“We both do. And we can discuss how my sons got hold of a gun from one of your men after I go and make sure they’re all right.” Amos laid the gun, in an evidence bag, between them. “That’s my wife’s gun. Where did you get it?”
“Stanley had it on his person. There is also a second clip that we took from him. Have you, either of you, taken your sons to an armory? To learn how to shoot a gun?” Caroline answered this time. “You know that there is a reason it’s against the law for children to be taught how to fire a gun. They’re too young to know that dead is dead. And paying off someone, as you put it, to let them get into such a place will get them shut down as well. My goodness, do you have any idea what sort of mess this has caused? I have five bodies in my station house now that I have to blame directly on the two of you.”
“I want to see my sons. Neither of them had better be hurt too badly, or I’m going to own this town.”
Caroline stood up and was let out of the room. Austin followed her. Amos looked at the three of them as Patrick was taken back to his cell. The idiot was laughing the entire time.
“They’re both dead.” MaryBeth looked at him and put her hand over her mouth in shock. “Stanley drew first and was killed when he fired back at one of the officers that was talking to him. David was killed the same way after he killed another officer and a bystander. Seven others were hurt in all the fire.”
“He would have used my gun.” Theo told MaryBeth to not say a word. “No. No, I won’t. But she knew this might happen. Something would happen. When he took my purse, and it emptied, all I could think about was that I was so glad I’d done what was asked of me.”
“Yes. I told you, however, that she can only see bits and pieces. She was talking to me while I was down with the others. Aunt Carson said now that it is over, she can see the chain of events fully. Had you had your gun on you when he took your purse, he would have killed all of us. Or at least tried. Even his little brother. Then he turned the gun on himself, she told me. Had he used your gun, MaryBeth, you would have been guilty of aiding and abetting. Aunt Carson is coming back here with my family to help with the clean up of this. I’m so very sorry for their deaths.”
Theo saw that Amos was talking to William. There was going to be big fallout from this. They might even try to make it sound as if William had set